Super Bowl XLVI: Lessons to be learned, part II

An estimated 177 million viewers -- or more than 56 percent of the current U.S. population -- watched at least six minutes of Super Bowl XLVI. That staggering statistic should set aside any doubt about the popularity of football ... and what a huge moneymaker it is for all parties involved.

While the Giants were celebrating and the Patriots were recovering on Super Bowl Monday, the Post University Sport Management Club gathered to share some research on just how big this event is from an economic standpoint. Through a series of impressive presentations during the inaugural "Post University Super Bowl Seminar," the club and its faculty advisors discussed The Big Game's impact at both the national and local levels.

Here are a few facts that demonstrate the scope of the Super Bowl from a financial point of view:

• Every player of the winning team received an $88,000 bonus. The "losers" got $44,000. That's more than $8,500,000 above and beyond player salaries.

• Estimates of income generated within the host city of Indianapolis range from $200 million to $500 million, depending on who you talk to. The NFL likes to quote the higher number.

• Sixty local, state, and federal agencies are involved in securing the Super Bowl stadium and crowd. Three-thousand-five-hundred security guards were trained for in-stadium duty alone.

• Approximately $240 million in sick pay went to employees who took Super Bowl Monday off to recuperate from the party, according to a Harris Interactive poll.

• Companies paid an average of $3.5 million for a 30-second TV spot during the game.

• Consumers spent $11 billion on Super-Bowl-related food and merchandise.

• Concessions teams fed more than 67,000 fans at the stadium.

• People wagered $100 million legally, and some say 20 times that amount illegally.

The Super Bowl is the apex of American sporting events, bringing the best of the best onto the field of competition while millions watch. What's often forgotten is the broad range of talented people needed off the field to produce a world-class sporting event.

At Post University, the sport managers of tomorrow are preparing their own game plans, watching and learning from the sidelines and preparing themselves to enter the job market ready to run with the ball. Watching this team in action on Super Bowl Monday, learning and sharing under the guidance of passionate teacher practitioners, turned just another game into something personal and meaningful.